Universal Health Care

Some thoughts shared by an Independence native:

Would a government funded health plan for all citizens help in solving the economic crisis? I think the answer might be “Yes”, if you consider the following factors:

1. Employers are working fewer people more hours because the cost of providing government mandated health care is so high that it costs more to pay benefits for an additional employee than it does to pay overtime. Relieving business of the cost of health insurance would result in business hiring more people rather than working fewer people overtime. This would reduce unemployment.

2. Hospitals and doctors are required to provide needed medical services regardless of the patient’s ability to pay. This means that the cost of providing these services has to be added to medical bills for those who have insurance or the ability to pay out of pocket. The cost of treating the needy should be borne by the population at large, not just by those who are able to pay their medical bills.

3. A U.S. business has to increase the price of their product to recover their cost for employee’s medical insurance. This places U.S. companies at a competitive disadvantage when competing with foreign businesses that do not have this cost. This should reduce our foreign imports and the relocation of production facilities to other countries.

Universal health care would not solve all our economic problems, but it appears to deserve serious consideration.